Magnitude 7.5 quake in northern Japan injures 23 people, triggers tsunami

TOKYO (AP) — A powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck off northern Japan late Monday, injuring more than 20 people and triggering a tsunami of up to 70 centimeters (28 inches) in Pacific coast communities, officials said. The Japanese government was still assessing damages from the tsunami and late-evening quake, which struck at about 11:15 p.m. (1415 GMT) in the Pacific Ocean around 80 kilometers (50 miles) off the coast of Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan’s main Honshu island. “I’ve never experienced such a big shaking,” convenience store owner Nobuo Yamada told the public broadcaster NHK in the Aomori prefecture town of Hachinohe, adding that “luckily” power lines were still operating in his area. A tsunami of 70 centimeters was measured in Kuji port in Iwate prefecture, just south of Aomori, and tsunami levels of up to 50 centimeters struck other coastal communities in the region, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 23 people were injured, including one seriously. Most of the victims were hit by falling objectWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times